


Subnautical Hermits: Below Zero

by Puppetmaster13



Series: Subnautical [3]
Category: Hermitcraft RPF, Subnautica (Video Game), Subnautica Below Zero (Video Game)
Genre: Alien Culture, Alien Flora & Fauna, Alien Planet, Alien Technology, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alterra (Subnautica) - Freeform, AquaScar - Freeform, Architechs, Architects, Arctic (Subnautica), Author Is Sleep Deprived, Background Character Death, Best Friends, Communication, Crystal Caves (Subnautica), Deep Ocean, Delta Island (Subnautica), Delta Station (Subnautica), Developing Relationship, Egg Laying, Etho is Vibing, Everything on Planet 4546B lays Eggs, Evil Xisuma isn't Evil, F/F, F/M, Fix-It of Sorts, Gen, Glacial Basin (Subnautica), Grian is a little shit, Group Cuddles, How Do I Tag, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Koppa Mining Site (Subnautica), Lilypad Islands (Subnautica), Literal Sleeping Together, M/M, Medical Procedures, Medical Trauma, Mermen, Merpeople, Multi, Ocean Planet, Omega Lab (Subnautica), Other, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Outpost Zero (Subnautica), Phi Robotics Center (Subnautica), Planet 4546B, Platonic Cuddling, Platonic Relationships, Pre-Canon, Pre-Relationship, Purple Vents (Subnautica), Sam Lives, Sanctuary (Subnautica), Sector Zero, Shapeshifting, Sleepy Cuddles, Snow and Ice, Sparse Arctic (Subnautica), Subnautica Merpeople, Subnautica Spoilers, Subnautica: Below Zero, TFC Xisuma & Joe are the only Responsible Ones, The Author Regrets Nothing, The Carnivores eat other things, The Vesper (Subnautica), Thermal Lillies, Thermal Spires (Subnautica), Tree Spires (Subnautica), Twisty Bridges (Subnautica), ZIT- Freeform, and, mermaid
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-02
Updated: 2021-03-07
Packaged: 2021-03-13 00:02:07
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 11,853
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29144142
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Puppetmaster13/pseuds/Puppetmaster13
Summary: A crossover between the wonderful game Subnautica: Below Zero, and the amazing series Hermitcraft.
Relationships: Al-An & Robin Ayou, Arek Lisowski | Keralis/Xisumavoid (Video Blogging RPF), Evil Xisuma/Worm Man, Grian & Iskall, Grian & MumboJumbo - Relationship, Other Relationship Tags to Be Added, Robin Ayou & Sam Ayou, Sam Ayou/Danielle, TFC/Parenthood, Worm Man & Evil Xisumanoid
Series: Subnautical [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2072571
Comments: 14
Kudos: 29





	1. World Info

**Author's Note:**

> "Talking"  
> [Fauna Noises]  
> 'Thinking'

**Link to Pictures:** https://puppetmaster13u.tumblr.com/post/640479906561769472/so-um-i-may-be-a-little-obsessed

**Hermit**

| 

**as a Subnautica Mer**

| 

**Hermit**

| 

**as a Subnautica Mer**  
  
---|---|---|---  
  
**BdoubleO100**

| 

**Sea Monkey (Glitter Thief)**

| 

MumboJumbo

| 

Pengwing (Water Flier)  
  
Biffa2001

| 

Ice Worm (Ice Hunter)

| 

**PythonGB**

| 

**Red Feather Fish (Red Dual Fin)**  
  
**Cubfan135**

| 

**Rock Puncher (Ground Walker** )

| 

Rendog

| 

Noot Fish (Big Jaw)  
  
Docm77

| 

Feather Fish (Dual Fin)

| 

**Stressmonster101**

| 

**Brinewing (Ice Breather)**  
  
**EthosLab**

| 

**Shadow Leviathan (Dark One)**

| 

TangoTek

| 

Cryptosuchus (Armoured Beast)  
  
FalseSymmetry

| 

Squid Shark (Deep Hunter)

| 

**TinFoilChef**

| 

**Eye Jelly (Watcher)**  
  
**GoodTimesWithScar**

| 

**Glow Whale (Star Wing)**

| 

VintageBeef

| 

Pinnacarid (Ice Hopper)  
  
Grian

| 

Arrow Ray (Sharp Fin)

| 

**Welsknight**

| 

**Blue Trivalve (Ice Walker)**  
  
**Hypnotizd**

| 

**Lilly Paddler (Color Swimmers)**

| 

Helsknight

| 

Orange Trivalve (Ice Walker)  
  
iJevin

| 

Vent Garden (Heat Beast)

| 

**xBCrafted**

| 

**Arctic Ray (Water Wing)**  
  
**ImpulseSV**

| 

**Brute Shark (Big Hunter**

| 

Xisumavoid

| 

Chelicerate (Red Ghost)  
  
Iskall85

| 

Discus Fish (Plant Fish)

| 

**Evil X**

| 

**Void Chelicerate (White Ghost)**  
  
**Jessassin**

| 

**Symbiote (Tiny Hunter)**

| 

ZedaphPlays

| 

Triops (Cave Watcher)  
  
JoeHills

| 

Spinner Fish (Spin Swimmer)

| 

**Zombie Cleo**

| 

**Frozen Leviathan (Great Beast)**  
  
**Keralis**

| 

**Arctic Peeper (Fast Fin)**

| 

Worm Man

| 

Spiky Trap (Tendril Plant)  
  
  * Alterra Staff: 
    * Scientists- 
      * Samantha Ayou
      * Danielle Valenti
      * Zeta Landon
      * Vinh Pham
      * Lillian Bench
    * Pilots/Miners/Security- 
      * Fred Lachance
      * Parvan Ivanov
      * Jeremiah Murgle
      * Unnamed Miner
      * Unnamed Miner
      * Unnamed Security Officer
    * Overseers-
      * Emmanuel Desjardins



Additional Ship ideas are welcome!


	2. Oo-Mans

Vintage lifted his head from his spot on the ice float, antennae twitching. Something was watching him- and it wasn’t one of his friends. Cautiously, he looked around, all four eyes straining. The ice hopper* didn’t see anything obvious, but he was vulnerable on top of the ice and out of the water, even with a few others of his kind nearby. 

There! Near the bit of frozen land there was something- no, multiple somethings- coming into view. They had no obvious claws or tail, but that didn’t stop him from rearing up, and sounding an alarm. Instantly, the others on the ice floats reared up, now also aware of the potential threat. It wasn’t hard to spot the land creatures, for they had no camouflage, and pretty soon most of the other ice-hoppers* had shuffled and hopped into the water. 

Vintage was the only one who stayed reared upwards- but that was alright. Those farther away from the land didn’t even get off the ice, simply keeping an eye on the weird creatures. Why in the world would something so small have such bright colors if they were on land? That was a death sentence. Actually, why had he never seen something like them before? Eyeing them speculatively, he slipped into the water, heading for the island caverns. 

Slipping through the frozen cracks and rock, his body became slimmer and fins shifted positions to become lower on his body. [Dang it- dang it!] He came rocketing from the water far too fast, sliding into a startled xB, who let out a squawk. [Sorry, sorry!] Vintage wriggled off of his friend with help from newly sprouted arms, thankful that this form was better for land than his usual. xB waved him off, a curious expression on his face. [It’s fine, but what were you in such a rush for?} Oh right, the creatures he had seen. 

[Right, are the others here?] Vintage had to tell them about the land-walking creatures. He could see Python and Doc, but as their shelter was covered with winding tunnels and smaller caverns, all twenty something of them could easily be there without his knowledge. Even the leviathans could stay hidden here with only the scent to show their presence. [Yeah, why? Is something wrong?] The water-wing tilted his head, a mixture of alarm and curiosity swirling in deep blue eyes. 

[That’s the thing, xB- I have no idea! There are these weird creatures that were on the ice! I’ve never seen anything really like them before! They don’t even look like they can walk on it right or swim or anything!] 

xB perked up, eyes alight with curiosity. The water wing’s tailtip flicked back and forth, making soft clinking noises against the ice. [How did you know? Were they sliding everywhere? Did one fall into the water or something?] They’d both seen their friends try going on the ice when they were all hatchlings, and some still had trouble. [And weird? Weird how?] There were some weird creatures in the water after all. 

[Weird like- like- like completely Outsider*** weird! They have these metal things and were making something over the water! It was floating like a piece of ice- but it didn't move!] Vintage spread his arms, waving them around for extra effect. By now some of the others were very obviously listening in, leaning out from their part of the caves with open curiosity. 

[They even had one that flew through the sky like a Feather-Flier*!] Awed chirps and hisses, intermittent with curious growls echoed through the cavern at his words. [They didn’t have any claws- but one had a metal one not part of their hand! I think they made a claw ‘cause they don’t have any- but it was way too big to fit on their finger anyway-] Vintage did his best to describe everything he’d seen with the odd foreign creatures to his friends. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Pinnacarid = Ice Hopper  
> **Arctic Ray = Water Wing  
> ***Outsider = Alien  
> *Feather-Flier = Skyray


	3. Mistake

Grian knew he was a little bit excitable. He knew he could be a little overwhelming- but he couldn’t help it! Everything was just so amazing. Yeah, he wasn’t supposed to be in the oo-man’s territory, but the strange things they set up to mark it were too interesting. They even gave food to other creatures! 

[C’mon Iskall!] he practically begged the green fish. [Just for a moment, I just want to get a closer look at it!] Mumbo, from his spot by a heat-flower, snorted. Grian ignored him like a  _ responsible adult _ , continuing his totally not begging. [ _ Please _ Iskall?] If he could get Iskall to say yes, then Mumbo would come along to make sure they “didn’t do anything stupid.” Which rude, they never did anything stupid. Now if he could just get Iskall to say yes!

[We aren’t supposed to go there Grian, you know that,] Mumbo interjected, yawning with his beak. Grian pouted, chittering out a [We aren’t actually going  _ inside _ the oo-man territory, I just wanna look…] His friends hesitated. [I guess just a few minutes wouldn’t hurt…] Iskall quietly acquiesced. Grian brightened, only to deflate when he continued. [No going into your second form though. I’d rather not have Xisuma or TFC on our tails.] All three puffed out bubbles in laughter. 

They were quick to swim to the area that had been forbidden. There was an odd shiny material crisscrossing through the water, rising  _ way _ higher than one could jump from the semi-shallow water and with openings too small for even Jessassin to fit through. Grian really wanted to check it out, as he hadn’t been able to do so. [Grian, slow down please!] Mumbo trilled at the ray. Said ray obliged, even if he was really excited. Look! There it is!] He darted closer, brushing against the weird hardened grass. [Iskall- Mumbo- look at this! Look!] He’d never felt something like it. It was smooth and cold like ice, but solid like rock and bouncy like kelp. The male tried to grab a piece with his mouth- rather hard to do without teeth- but it didn’t break. [I need some of this!] 

Mumbo sighed, surfacing for air, while Iskall also bumped against the odd barrier. [This stuff is  _ Omega _ ! Do you think it's some sort of land plant- or maybe some sort of land rock stuffs?] The green plant fish flitted farther along the edge. [It goes on for so long!] Mumbo joined them back underwater just in time to catch the tail end of Iskall’s comment. [It goes up pretty high too. I don’t think we’d be able to jump it in our other forms- no Grian, that  _ wasn’t _ a challenge I  _ swear _ .] Grian chirped sheepishly at Mumbo’s glare, instantly assuring that  _ of course not, _ he  _ wasn’t going to _ . 

[Dudes, look at this!] Iskall had made it a little bit ahead of them, and had apparently found something. It was pretty easy to catch up and see just what he had found. The hard-grass stuff just folded inwards, leaving a large rectangle, with the barrier somehow being at the surface of the water. [What do you think it is?] They were hesitant to get closer, but this couldn’t be the oo-man’s den right? They stayed on land. [Imma touch it] Grian abruptly announced, darting in. 

[Grian/No!] Both shrieked, darting in after them. Mumbo bumped into something, sending him tumbling into Iskall, who in turn tumbled into Grian who was turning back towards them. [Oh no!] They all hit an odd seabed, consisting of the same hard plant-or-rock thing. Wiggling out of the pile, Grian’s heart stopped. The opening was gone. How was it gone- it had been there mere seconds before! 

Disbelief filled him, and the ray zipped back over, pushing against it and pulling with his mouth. Nothing. It wouldn’t budge. Screeching, he flitted along the edge in a panic. [Grian! Grian! Calm down!] Iskall barked, trying to get him to stop panicking. [You’re alright-  _ we’re _ alright.] He rested his head against Grian’s side, being careful around the sharp part of his fins. [C’mon, the oo-man’s have to have a way out, right?] The ray calmed down at Iskall’s words. Yes, that made sense, there had to be another way out. Maybe the three of them had just accidentally gone through the entrance!

Yeah, that made sense- no one ever just had  _ one _ entrance! Mumbo popped up to the surface. [I’ll see if there’s maybe a shorter part of it we can jump over, or maybe a place where it meets the land.] Surely since it didn’t go to the ground, it had to be attached to something? Plants don’t just sprout from nowhere. 

All three of them systematically moved inward from the edge when they couldn’t find a way to leave. The barrier was attached to the land like Mumbo thought, but the issue was that it was to a cliff- much too high to quickly change and escape. [Do you think the others have realised we’re gone? Wait- stupid question. Do you think they’ll realize where we are?] Iskall winced at Grian’s question. [I hope they do and don’t. Getting yelled at is not fun…] Xisuma would definitely have been worried about them, and TFC would give them the Disappointed Look™. The older school members wouldn’t let them leave without them for  _ forever _ , just to make sure they didn’t get into trouble again. 

[G-guys, I need to go up and breath again…] Mumbo quietly trilled, his version of a whisper. Iskall and Grian looked at each other. Their friend needed to breathe air in his usual form, and they really shouldn’t change unless it was an emergency. But if the oo-mans saw him in their territory… [Mumbo, I know we aren’t supposed to, but I think we should change.] His friends looked like they wanted to argue, but Grian continued. [If we aren’t seen, maybe we can sneak out- but right now Mumbo needs to keep going up to breathe. We don’t know how long we’ll be stuck here, so it would be better to not risk it, right?] He wouldn’t change unless the others were fine with it- he wasn’t going to risk their safety. 

Both mulled over his words- Grian could tell- before eventually agreeing. Mumbo changed first, seeing as the whole reason they were changing was so he could have gills. Pale flesh emerged, and a black beak changed to hair. Fins shifted downwards, feet receded until they were no more, and gills melted into existence. Grian went next, impatient as ever. His bottom fin split into two, moving closer to the side, gills moving upwards. Scales split apart into golden brown hair and tiny speckles dotting tan flesh. Iskall went last, seeing as he was practically part plant. Brown hair, with a large bit covering the lower half of his face, sprouted, a singular eye split into two, and he coaxed the algae to move downwards. 

[Here, there’s a dip in the cliff] Iskall used newly sprouted arms to motion towards the aforementioned dip. It wouldn’t really hide them seeing as parts of them produced lights, but it was better than the large open area. All three made their way over and inspected it more closely. It would be a little bit of a tight fit, but they could fit inside and leave if needed. So they did, Mumbo closest to the opening, as his only bioluminescence was on his retractable tail. Which itself was only used to help make tight and sudden turns. 

[Goodnight.]

[Night.]

[G’night.]

They awoke to  _ quite _ a bit of commotion. Oo-mans were on the ice, calling out to each other and motioning in seemingly random directions. A few of them were practically right on top of their hiding spot. The three friends dared not move, terror freezing them in place. Would the oo-mans see them? What would they  **do** to them if they were seen? Grian gripped Mumbo’s arm in a near bruising grip, breath heavy. Iskall climbed over them, pressing them farther into the dip. If the oo-mans looked, maybe they’d just think it was some plants growing in a crevice. 

[Is-Iskall?] Grian quietly warbled, eyes wide and terrified meeting a pair with the same amount of terror. [Sh, I don’t think they-] Iskall cut off as two oo-mans _jumped into the water_ and began to _swim._ Oo-mans could _swim_. They hadn’t noticed them yet, which was a miracle really. In fact they seemed far more enamored with placing some sort of cubes* down on the floor. One of them pointed upwards, the other leaving the water, thank the sun. Just as Grian felt hope that they would go undiscovered, the one still in the water turned around their eyes meeting. 

The oo-man kicked back with a borderline shrieking noise, bubbles flowing from something on the head. Their face was completely obscured, so Grian couldn’t see their expression. From what he could tell though, they seemed surprised- maybe even a little scared. Being scared meant nothing good- scared creatures were unpredictable, and it was staring at them. Grian’s grip on Mumbo’s arm tightened, causing the ravenette to let out a slight chirp of pain. That sound apparently interrupted Iskall’s and the oo-man’s staredown, as they kicked their way upwards, making a racket all the way. 

[Sh-should we make a break for it?] Mumbo appeared just as terrified as him, black eyes far wider than normal. Iskall shook his head, trying to put on a brave face for his friends. [Where? Everything is open without anywhere to hide. At least here we don’t have to worry about one of them trying to get us from behind.]

Grian peered over his friends’ shoulders and pushed down his instincts to try and swim away. There were now five or six completely new oo-mans in the water watching them. Some of them even motioned towards the three creatures, making their weird noises, and others were pointing something white straight towards the trio. [What do we do?] Grian chittered worriedly, his grip on his friends- which had been nearly limp moments before, returning. 

[Not panic- definitely don’t panic, okay? None of us panic…] Mumbo practically repeated over and over, panic rising. Iskall pressed himself back, which in turn pressed Mumbo and Grian farther behind him and more out of the oo-mans’ line of sight. No way was he going to let the younger (only by a month or two!) males get hurt. Two were approaching now, one of the ones holding the white stick thing and another one still making noise, albeit far quieter than the others. 

“Hey there, we aren’t gonna’ hurt you, it’s okay….” They continued to make the strange sounds, which none of the trio could understand. [What are they _ doing? _ ] Grian hissed, eyes wild and pupils wide. He got no answer. The oo-mans got ever closer, Grian could see some of the details on their faces now. A terrified trill escaped him, causing Iskall to let out a hiss. It was the equivalent to telling the ray to hush, but the oo-mans had no way of knowing that. 

They stopped in their tracks, apparently now wary of approaching the cornered creatures. “No need for that, we’re not tryin’ to scare you…” Iskall was getting frustrated at the gibberish. [Don’t come any closer to us!] he shrieked, trying to appear larger than them. They had split up, and his head was going back and forth while he tried to keep them in his sights. The white stick that the quiet one was holding began to glow, blue collecting at the end. 

Iskall turned towards it just as everything went white.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sharp Fin = Arrow Ray  
> Water Flier = Pengwing  
> Plant Fish = Discus Fish  
> Oo-mans = Humans  
> White Stick = Stasis Rifle  
> Shiny Hard Grass = Chain Links


	4. Kidnapped

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> or should I say mer-napped

Mumbo was terrified. He was in a small see-through den thing on a moving land-iceberg, barely able to move two feet. The top was covered with the same crisscrossing stuff, and he’d already spilled practically all the water from his thrashing. Both Grian and Iskall were in near identical tiny dens next to him, but the weird ice-like barrier stopped them from comforting each other. Grian was shrieking up a storm, no words, just straight up panic. Mumbo had passed that stage of panic, and was completely still, heartbeat pounding through his head.

He didn’t know where they were- only Biffa and Cleo had been so far inland before- but still he strained to see something- anything- familiar. Nothing. He trilled sadly. “Hey there buddy.” He flinched at the sudden gibberish, refusing to turn towards the oo-man. Didn’t matter if they tapped at the ice-stuff. “Hey, don’t be sad- you’ll be right back to the ocean soon. Just wanna’ make sure none of y’all got hurt or anything.”

Mumbo really wanted to understand what the oo-mans were doing and  _ why _ they were doing it. 

How long were they moving for, he couldn’t tell. One moment it seemed like they were barely moving, the next like that had traveled for miles. When he finally twisted himself around, it was to a  _ huge _ cave. Like, one big enough that he swore Cleo could walk through it in her normal form. “Here we are guys- it’s not gonna’ take long at all I swear.” Iskall hissed in frustration and perhaps a bit of fury as the oo-man tapped at the ice-stuff. Mumbo was just too exhausted to care about what the loud oo-man was doing. 

They had made it into the cave now, where there were presumably unnatural structures. “Danielle? Why did you bring some of the local fauna here?” There were a few new oo-mans joining the ones who had put them in these tiny dens. Grian had long since quieted, and despite his obvious fear, was twisting around, curious. [Mumbo, Mumbo, what’s that over there?] Grian trilled, hand on the barrier and motioning to  _ something _ \- he wasn’t sure what. 

[I don’t know Grian. Hey Iskall, stop growling like a tiny-hunter* and look like this.] Mumbo warbled. Yes, he knew Grian was just trying to distract them, and he appreciated it. He wasn’t too sure about Iskall, who was staring down the newer oo-mans, but turned when Mumbo called to him. [What do you think those are?] There was an odd floating thing over a circle. Now, they never really went on land, but they knew things didn’t just float randomly. 

“Fine, fine, we’ll bring them inside to check on them, geeze.” Sam covered her exasperated smile as Danielle practically lit up. Really, her and her animals. Wait, did they count as animals? Er, her and her humanoids? That didn’t sound right. Zeta’s nose scrunched up when she saw what was in the tanks. “Do we really have to bring those things into the sterile lab? Who knows where they’ve been!” Parvan snorted at that, rolling his eye and making his way back outside- away from the three scientists. Sam sighed. “It’ll just be a minute- and one of them is a Pengwing, so maybe we can test some stuff with our project.”

Zeta grumbled but eventually acquiesced. It wasn’t like they had really unpacked or had set up anything anyway. The three tanks were taken off the transport via propulsion cannon, their occupants panicking and splashing the last bits of water from inside. “Dang, I didn’t think they’d look so…” Sam trailed off, unsure how to explain. Sure she’d heard the fauna be referred to as mermen and mermaids in a joking matter, but this right before her wasn’t a joke. She crouched down, tapping on the reinforced glass. “You found them together?”

Danielle smiled brightly. “Yeah- I think they were tryin’ to hide in the ice. All three of them were just curled up together in this crack,” she cooed, crouching next to Sam and ignoring the shrieking. “Just in a nice comfy pile in a corner where they weren’t really bothered ‘till we came along. I think they were sleeping, and we woke them up.” She paused, suddenly switching gears. “I think I’m gonna’ name them something. Well, give ‘em nicknames at least.”

The ravenette grabbed a scanner from a shelf and unclipped the lid. Sam practically choked on her own spit. “Are you  _ sure _ it’s a good idea to just let them out in the base?” That  _ really  _ didn’t seem like a good idea. In fact, that sounded like the  _ opposite _ of a good idea. Danielle waved away her worries, scanning a trio of obviously distraught creatures who had somehow managed to tip the tanks over. “Hey,” the biologist scolded them as they wiggled their way into a corner. “No running away now. Are you hungry?”

She reached into an aquarium, snagging a boomerang and tossed it to them. Sam sighed. “I don’t think that will work… oh, nevermind.” The robotic specialist was surprised to see one of them- the pengwing one- instantly scarfed it down like it hadn’t eaten all day. Which, if they were stuck, then that was actually quite possible. The other two eyed them with pure mistrust and perhaps a hint of frustration. Danielle cooed down at the trio, easily a few seconds from reaching out to them. “ _ Dani! _ ” Sam hissed, appalled that her coworker would actually put herself in harm's way for no reason. 

“Calm down Sam, they’re just scared,” the ravenette assured her, holding out a spare sample of beau to the fauna. Distrust clearly on their faces- wow where they expressive- they inched closer. The way they moved was hypnotizing in a way, with the tails reminding Sam of snakes or caterpillars in their movement. Maybe that was why she was shaken by them- they were like a mix of snakes and humans giving an uncanny valley kind of feeling. 

“Aw, you’re all just so cute, you know that?” Dani laughed at the creatures. The one with the green plant-looking tail had ushered the other two back behind it- him? It  _ looked  _ like a “him” at least. Sam stopped her line of thought when she realized Danielle was speaking again. “I’m gonna call  _ you _ Viktor-” She pointed at the one in the frontand then towards another. “-And you will be Charles. As for you, you look like an Oliver. I don’t know why, but you do.” She was definitely pointing at the pengwing that time. Sam shook her head at her coworker’s shenanigans. 

“You’re acting like they’re pets and not wild aliens Danielle,” Zeta grumbled from the doorway, sipping on a presumed cup of coffee. “Well, I mean, we’ll be needing specimens anyway…” Dani muttered, a blush spreading across her pale cheeks. “Hey maybe we could put some sort of cameras on them- for research of course! So you guys can learn more about how pengwings in the natural habitat act.” 

Sam sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. She could get doing so with the pengwing, but not the other two. Really Sam figured Dani just wanted some other pets around- she had ever since meeting Auggie. The spy pengling project just gave her an excuse to bring back local fauna for  _ research _ . Sam let out another sigh. “Fine, but we aren’t keeping them in here until then. There is far too much delicate equipment needed to make a camera that small and durable to keep them in the lab. If you want to use part of your paycheck for a containment chamber- then that’s on you.” There, that was simple enough- it made both of her basemates happy. Danielle got her pseudo-pets, and Zeta got her clean lab. 

Her raven-haired basemate gave a blinding smile. “Thanks a lot Sam!” 

F@ck, she was so gay for this woman. 

Grian tried to peak over Iskall’s shoulders, fins twitching curiously. His bulkier frame gently pushed him back, hissing a warning. [Grian- no!] No way was he letting his friend’s curiosity get any of them hurt. [Don’t you dare even try getting closer to the land walkers! Mumbo grab him please!] Mumbo did as requested, ignoring Grian’s protests as he laid on the brunette’s tail. Iskall inwardly thanked his taller companion as one of said land-walker’s approached. If Grian could, he’d try to find out everything he could about these things, not mindful of how dangerous they could be. 

“Hey there little guys, why don’t we get you back into some water?”

Iskall hissed at the land walker, baring his teeth. [Back off!] The plant-fish** really didn’t like how close it was getting, and he couldn’t take a swipe at it seeing as they were out of reach. (Thank you Doc and False for insisting that everyone learned to fight.) They paused in their approach for a few scant moments before continuing to reach for the trio. 

“I’m not gonna’ hurt your friends, calm down…” 

He hissed again, lashing out and barely missing in tearing a gash in the outstretched arm. The oo-man jerked back, eyes wide in surprise. The other oo-man made a loud distressed sound and pulled them back away from him. Good. They’d better  _ stay  _ back. 

[Get off Mumbo- I can’t see! What are they doing?] Mumbo had apparently decided to practically lay on top of Grian to prevent him from making a break for the oo-mans. Iskall turned towards his friends for a moment, reassuring himself that they were alright, and Grian hadn’t gotten into any mischief. The sharp-fin*** was sulking on the ground, tail tip twitching in annoyance, while the ravenette on top of him was witholding a sigh. Probably one of those, “Grian I love you, but you’re an idiot sometimes” sighs. 

Reassured, Iskall turned back towards the two oo-mans. Now they were back to inching closer, one holding the same white stick as the ones from before, the one that made everything white and fuzzy. Iskall arched his back, hissing. Those sticks were dangerous. They made his mind go blank and body freeze as though it was frozen in ice. His friends stilled at his tone, recognizing the borderline terror before also backing up as much as they could. 

“Danielle, I really wish you weren’t risking your fingers right now.”

“Relax Sam, they’re just scared and in a completely new place. I mean, how would you react if you were just dropped in the middle of the woods and then these weird alien things kept trying to poke at you?”

Iskall narrowed his eyes at them. One was way closer, but the other had the white stick-thing. Racking his brain for (the admittedly sparse) information he had about oo-mans, the plant fish recalled that they didn’t exactly have claws or sharp teeth. They had to use other things to attack. So the one with the white stick was more of a threat at the moment- the other wasn’t in range for an attack at the time anyway. Turning more towards the standing one, Iskall ignored the other- for now. 

They both continued to make their gibbering noises, which grated at his ears. Nothing like the guttural growls or musical chirps his friends made. (Xisuma’s especially could be terrifying if you didn’t know him.) Iskall didn’t outwardly complain however- he could use the noise to keep a general idea of their positions. Grian once again peeked over his shoulder, though thankfully didn’t try and approach the oo-mans. Apparently he recognized the white stick as well. 

[Can you find an opening Mumbo?] At least Grian was thinking about escape now, instead of whatever oo-man object had grabbed his wandering attention before. 

The oo-man inched closer, stick pointed straight at them. [If we move it’ll probably use that thing, Grian. Our best bet is to stay right here where nothing can get us from behind.] Mumbo’s voice was quiet and tinged with panic, even as he methodically explained his reasoning. A show of bravado and not much else. The water-flier* was barely trembling, but he obviously wanted to bolt. Iskall didn’t blame him one bit. 

Wait…. 

. . .

Where had the other one gone?! Iskall turned his head at Grian’s startled screech, only for the oo-man in front of him to use the white stick. [Gria-] Everything around him went white and fuzzy feeling. It was like time itself slowed down, weighing down his limbs and making them numb. The plant-fish could hear his friends scared sounds, but it seemed muffled, or far away. He felt like the entire world had shifted, gravity changing around him. The white once again encompassed his senses, leaving him blind to everything around him,

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Symbiote = Tiny Hunter  
> **Discus Fish = Plant-Fish  
> ***Arrow Ray = Sharp-Fin  
> *Pengwing/ling = Water-Flier
> 
> The clear-moving den is a glass box/aquarium.   
> The White stick is a stasis rifle


	5. Free

[Has _anyone_ seen them recently? No one? No one in the last day- not even in the deeper waters? No one at all?] TFC was worried. Three of the young ones- and they were young, even if they all insisted they were adults and could take care of themself- had seemingly disappeared. And with the suspicious timing of the oo-man arrival, he could guess why. There was still the slimmest of chances that they had gotten trapped in a cave though, which TFC was for once hoping for. 

Etho surged from the water and onto the ice and rock next to them. [They aren’t in the crystal caves. Biffa said he saw the oo-mans with something that smelled like fish, but he was too far away to actually see what it was.] Now Etho was usually pretty calm, and even when he was angry almost no one would actually realize. The covering over the lower half of his face helped with that, and even his eyes were carefully blank. You had to look at the legs on his underside, which tapped at the ice in his irritation. 

Almost immediately a cacophony of noises erupted from the others. Calls for blood, or straight up panic rose up and echoed around the caverns. 

[Everybody- _QUIET_!] A near unholy bellow finally silenced their hysteria. TFC gave a slight grateful nod towards Ex, the white-ghost* glaring at the rest of the school** from his perch next to Worm. Xisuma spoke up, using the opportunity his sibling had given him. [For those that straight up want to attack the oo-mans, there are several problems with that.] 

He held up a hand, ticking a finger for each reason given. [First of all, we have no idea where their other dens are, so even if we were going to attack- w _hich we aren’t,_ we have no idea where to go. Second of all, not all of them would be guilty of taking our friends. Don’t get me wrong, I’m just as worried as the rest of you, but we have to use our brains, lest more of us go missing. So, does anyone have any _actual_ plans or ideas?] 

In the end it was decided that Scar, Jevin, and Xisuma would go to the land, with Biffa acting as a guide. The ice-hunter*** was the only one of them that had actually seen the oo-man den after all. Plus, while Cleo could also get to it, she was far too willing to break a few legs so to say. 

Grian stayed curled up underneath Iskall, even if there was no point in doing so. Mumbo was partially underneath him, the feathers acting like a pillow, while Iskall covered as much of them as he could. It gave the sharp-fin* some comfort in the familiarity of it all, within this terrifying and alien surroundings. 

There was no cover, and no ice here, yet still white seemed to stretch on forever, only broken when an oo-man came into view. The water was shallow too, and the walls completely translucent. They didn’t even have the illusion of a hiding place. 

Every once in a while- Grian had no way to tell how much time had passed here so it could be way more often than he was making it out to be- one of the dark-haired oo-mans from before would come in. (Thankfully without the white stick object) Sometimes they’d put something in the water, like the really soft not-plant thing** that Mumbo had pretty much snatched to curl up in. Which really hadn’t been fair, but if it helped with his nerves, then Grian wasn’t going to try and take it from him. 

Oh, they also brought food too!

“Hey there little guys- aw! You're back to curling up together! I wonder if that’s behavior usually seen in the wild too- I man we haven’t seen anything like it, but…” The black-haired oo-man trailed off in their meaningless mumbles. Grian just watched them, and definitely didn’t try and sneak any closer. No sirree, Iskall totally didn't have to yank him back into the pile and practically lay on him. Nope. 

[Grian- No.] 

[Grian Yes! They haven’t hurt us Iskall!] 

[ _Yet_ Grian, the oo-man hasn’t hurt us _yet_!] 

Their argument continued on, Mumbo interjecting every few moments , seeing as they were both laying on top of him. Eventually it got heated enough that it got the oo-man’s attention. 

“What are we screeching about now?” Danielle crouched next to the tank, watching the three fauna seemingly argue. Their expressions were so human-like, and they themselves were so expressive as well! She’d almost gotten used to the normally guarded expressions of other Alterra workers, suspicious that someone would try and steal their work or some other conspiracy. The fauna just seemed so _alive_ and _open_ compared to that, that the biologist couldn’t help but watch them whenever a chance showed itself. 

The discus fish- Viktor- was protective of the other two, being borderline aggressive towards anyone who got near. He was chunkier than the others, probably because he didn’t have to search for food. Not to say he was fat- definitely not, just rounder. Kind of friend shaped actually. She swore his beard looked way too soft and fluffy for it to be in saltwater like pretty much all the time, which made her wonder if their hair was made from something completely different to a human’s. 

The arrow ray- Charles- was the most curious, and constantly tried to get into things, much to the apparent dismay of his friends. He also kept trying to watch her or any other humans too, but kept getting dragged back by one of the others and practically smothered. Which seemed to be what was currently happening, the smaller fish being pinned by the larger to stop him from going towards the other side where Danielle was crouched. 

The pengwing- Oliver- had claimed the weighted blanket she’d dropped into the tank the other day. The poor guy seemed to be a cluster of nerves and on the edge of a panic attack half the time. He had a really awesome mustache though- like it looked perfectly groomed despite the fact that- again- they would have been in saltwater for ninety-something percent of their life. His eyes were really interesting though. They looked black when she’d first seen them, but they seemed to change, multiple colors swirling amidst a dark backdrop of emotion. It was kind of like a mood ring! 

Danielle covered her mouth, muffling her laughter at the downright indignant expression on the smallest fish’s face. Actually, it was rather questionable if they _were_ fish. They didn’t seem to need to regulate their temperature, and exhibited mammal traits as well as some amphibian ones as well. It was all really interesting to her and-

A massive boom interrupted her train of thought, bringing everything to a screeching halt. _‘What in the sweet mother of earth was that?!’_ Had there been a cave in- had one of the ships crashed?! She hesitated at the doorway, glancing back at the now panicking creatures. _‘Dang it. I can’t just leave them here-’_ Another crash, followed by an unbearably loud shriek. _‘Was that an ice-worm?!’_ What was an ice worm doing here?! They _never_ went to this side of the glacier! 

It screeched again, closer this time, and to Danielle’s horror, the three _answered_. Where they communicating to it- telling it that they were here?! Ice worms ate everything and anything that could possibly fit into their mouth- it would sooner eat them than help them-! 

She screamed as the roof was torn from its spot, a large serpentine body travelling above them. Hundreds of centipede-like legs gripped onto the metal and ice, which creaked and bent under its weight. There were other shouts and screams, but everything felt so quiet and small compared to this behemoth’s sheer destructive presence. Danielle could only watch in transfixed horror as it slowly lifted up, head going higher and higher until it seemed to block out the sun. Ice and snow rained down from shaking plates, and steam rose from the red hot horn as it reared its head back, screeching out to the sky. 

“Oh fuck- oh god- I’m _going to die- oh shi-”_ Danielle was yanked out of the room by an equally terrified Sam. “Don’t just stand there- run!” The roboticist yelled as chunks of ice and snow went flying. Danielle had never been this close to a leviathan- and she never wanted to ever again. 

It was massive, red hot horn tearing through the metal base like a knife through soft butter. She shuddered as they ran, imagining what it could do to a human. There were more sounds now that they were farther away: security barking orders, people screaming in fear, to name a few. Even then it was almost drowned out by the cracking ice and screeching of crushed metal. Her heart sank. There was no way the three fauna would survive that. 

The leviathan reared up once more, and the security took the chance to try and get it to leave. Thumpers seemed to have no effect on it though, as its tail swiped the offending objects away. Both of the women gaped. “No- no way! The thumpers have always worked before-!” Sam looked even more terrified, with the color drained from her face and her eyes wild. Danielle couldn’t blame her, she probably looked the same. 

Apparently done with everything, the ice worm turned towards the open ocean, charging towards it. Shockingly though, it didn’t burrow. Why didn’t it burrow- they always burrowed-! 

“Sweet mother earth…” the ravenette breathed, feeling strangely sick and giddy at the same time. There were more leviathans in the water; at least two*** from what she could see, but they weren’t ice worms- that would apparently be too simple. There was, however, a chelicerate _right in the bay_ , with a _glow whale_. Danielle knew they didn’t know a lot about the chelicerates, but she knew they were really freaking aggressive. It should be attacking the glow whale- actually, it should be in the deeper waters in general! 

The chelicerate let out its own rumbling snarl as the ice worm entered the water, mandibles snapping. Yet it still didn’t attack, simply circled the partially submerged leviathan. What was it doing? To Danielle’s shock and sudden understanding, all of them began to shrink in size and shape. Of course all fauna could change into the humanoid forms, but it was so uncommon for one to do so- even less so for a carnivore. So one could forgive her for being so shocked at seeing three _leviathans_ willingly changing into smaller and weaker forms. 

Increasing her brain short-circuit, her three friends also popped up in the water. _Had the ice worm_ _carried_ _them somehow?!_ Danielle’s legs gave out, dragging both her and Sam to the ground. The adrenaline was starting to wear out, leaving her limbs shaking and mind racing. 

_‘Just how much do we not know about this place?’_

**(Bonus:)**

Mumbo winced, feathers fluttering as TFC and Xisuma finally finished their tirade. All three friends were wishing they could melt away into the floor and disappear. Anything to escape the scolding, and the embarrassment as they were all checked over and dragged into the shared nest. (Something pretty much none of them had been forced into since they were new hatchlings) A few gave them looks of pity as they were smothered, but didn’t dare interfere. 

No one wanted the two mother-hen’s ire turned towards themself.

[We were all so worried- no one knew where you were! What were you thinking going to the oo-man territory?!] TFC fretted, practically flitting between the trio with a worried expression. Grian winced beside Mumbo, ducking his head underneath the nest of plants. Iskall wasn’t much better, ears red from embarrassment. Mumbo probably didn’t look much better, and Joe gave them looks of sympathy. 

[Never do that again,] Xisuma reprimanded Grian, a frown on his face. TFC fussed over Iskall, the watcher’s** tendrils checking for any injury on the plant-fish***. Mumbo cringed, ignoring Cleo’s snickers at their misfortune. At least Ex wasn’t here- the White ghost* would be howling with laughter at the mess the trio had gotten into. 

Of course Mumbo just had to have no brain to mouth filter at the moment. 

[Um, well, a-at least w-we got this nice s-soft thing?] The two turned towards the mustached man with disbelief across their faces. [Y’know, I-I’m just gonna’ g-go into the n-nest…] He slunk down under the disappointed expressions of the two older males and the howls of laughter of his friends. 

*Water-Flier = Pengwings/Penglings

**Watcher = Eye Jelly

*** Plant Fish = Discus Fish

*White Ghost = Void Chelicerate

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *White-Ghost = Void Chelicerate  
> **School = Large Group of Merpeople  
> ***Ice Hunter = Ice Worm  
> *Sharp-Fin = Arrow Ray  
> **Soft Not-Plant = Blanket  
> ***iJevin is in humanoid form, and camouflages in the water, hence why the humans don't see him


	6. Friend

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What, doubly chapters in one day? It's more likely than you think!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This takes place before Keralis knew about the architechs being missing

Keralis had never really gone so deep in the lilypads. He hadn’t really ever gone very far into the lily pads before either though. So maybe he should have done so earlier! The fast-fin* usually stuck to shallower waters, where he could stay near the surface. Not that he never went deeper- he just usually had someone with him when he did, like Xisuma or Bubbles. Most predators wouldn’t dare mess with a red ghost** after all. 

But he digressed. 

The lilypads were beautiful, with large chunks of the seafloor suspended by the massive plants. Specklings of metals dotted the floating islands, twinkling like stars in the fractured beams of light from the surface. Keralis let out a laugh of delight, diving deeper and through the forest of foliage. Other small fish darted away, panicked by the sudden appearance of this new unknown. Which, Keralis didn’t know why they didn’t just go to their second form, but to each their own he supposed.

He dove deeper. 

The foliage grew far thicker than he was used to here, forcing him to push through long-decaying leaves to avoid the circling predators. He’d gotten shocked by False once on accident before and it was not a pleasant experience. Thankfully, the deep hunters*** and big hunters* left him alone for the most part. Those that did approach were left behind as he darted into crevices. Said cracks led into caves, where spin swimmers** darted every which way, followed by big jaws***. The fast fin let out another giggle, bubbles rising from quivering gills as he smiled. 

This place was awe-inspiring. 

Thousands of bulbous plants- something Keralis had never seen before- lined the walls and floor. They looked almost like scales, or maybe eyes. He giggled at the thought. That was kind of ridiculous. Swimming closer, the green suddenly changed into a blinding brightness. He let out a slight screech of surprise, backing away. Back to green. This was… so amazing! Why had he never gone down before? 

He ran a webbed hand near the plants, watching as they once again changed colors. The brunette laughed again, tail flicking back and forth as he swam along the edge of the wall of plants. How come no one had told him about this place before? Unless, no one had discovered it before? But surely someone had- Scar and False loved to swim in the lilypads! 

Trilling thoughtfully, the fast-fin rounded a bend, only to freeze. 

Surely he had to be seeing things? Keralis rubbed his eyes. Nope, still there. What was an oo-man den doing all the way down here? Swimming closer, he sighed in relief. It looked old, with bits of rust and plants entwining with the columns below. So then, if it wasn’t from the oo-mans Beef-ers had told them about, who had built it? Had the oo-mans been here longer than the school* had realized? 

No, that wouldn’t make sense. He ran his hand along the edge, ducking his head underneath. There was a warm air pocket here, which was weird. The brunette hesitated for a moment, before dragging himself out of the water. He couldn’t see any threat- and it  _ was _ rather warm here. Maybe he could take a quick nap, and then he could show this place to the others? They could use it in case their island cave-home was found! 

The fast-fin gave a slight nod, followed by a massive yawn. Yeah, a nap sounded good. 

“How the hell did one of you get in here?”

Keralis’ head shot up like a bullet. There was a metal-shell thing that the oo-man’s used to get around in the den-cave now, and an oo-man was getting out of it. The fast-fin was frozen, eyes wide in terror as the oo-man practically stomped closer. Apparently this place wasn’t as abandoned as it looked. 

“Oh for earth’s sake, shoo- go back into the water or something.”

They waved their arm halfheartedly towards the water. Keralis slowly moved backwards, inwardly cursing a little bit. He was way slower on land, and his body was lethargic, meaning he had fallen asleep for far longer than he had thought. It was probably night time now. The oo-man took a deep breath, muttering in its own language. They seemed tired too, and maybe a little frustrated. 

Keralis tilted his head, curiosity beginning to bloom. They didn’t  _ seem _ mean. Heck, Ex acted way more rude than they were being, and Keralis had intruded into their den! The fast-fin visually perked up, tendrils swaying slightly. 

“No, no, back into the water- the  _ water _ ! This way, over  _ here _ .” 

The oo-man did the deep breath thing again when he didn’t move. Why did it keep tapping at the pool of water? Did they… want him to move over to the water? Oh! Was that breath thing a thing oo-mans did when they were annoyed or frustrated- like how Ex clicked his mandibles or Cleo clawed at the ground? That would make sense! He looked over at the oo-man for a few moments before he slipped into the water. 

“Finally, what even is a peeper doing here- no, _shoo_! Go away- I don’t have anything for you!”

Keralis tilted his head from where he had surfaced. This was where they had been motioning after all. So why did they still seem frustrated. Maybe they were tired? Some of the school got angry-sounding when they were tired. Oh! Maybe it was because they were wanting to sleep, and Keralis was in their den! Most didn’t like others going into their sleeping nest area. He’d leave then! 

The oo-man seemed rather bemused when he waved goodbye though. 

Marguerit would be dismayed to find the peeper back multiple times, and sometimes with other creatures as well. There went her quiet days with her snow stalker. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Arctic Peeper = Fast-Fin  
> **Chelicerate = Red Ghost  
> ***Squid Shark = Deep Hunter  
> *Brute Shark = Big Hunter  
> **Spinner Fish = Spin Swimmer  
> ***Noot Fish = Big Jaw  
> *Big group of fish = School


	7. Cat

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you guys want to see the art for this chapter you can find it here: https://puppetmaster13u.tumblr.com/post/644315546736902144/the-story-is-having-a-new-chapter-uploaded-today

Scar let out an echoing call to the other star-wings* as he slipped away, opting to head to the island for the night. He’d eaten his fill for the day, and was ready to head home. Not quite go to  _ sleep _ yet mind you, but he’d start heading back. Tinfoil would be worried if anyone came back late with all the oo-mans out and about. Especially with no way to tell if they were dangerous to the others- as most things at least left leviathans alone.

Unless the oo-mans hunted leviathans- Scar hadn’t thought about that. 

Nah- nothing hunted leviathans once they were fully grown! (Both Cleo and Maida sneezed from their respective beds) He bobbed his head decisively. Yeah, he was pretty safe! Though, maybe he should be smaller, so he wasn’t seen? The oo-mans had seen him in the bay before after all, and they might recognize him!

Yeah, he should change into his smaller form. 

Scales melted away, soon followed by flesh. Bones crunched and changed, growing smaller, and changing in structure. Tan skin grew over yellow-tinted muscle, followed by a messy op of brown hair. Massive limbs shrunk in size, until they were a mere fraction of what they were before. Green eyes blinked, waiting a moment for his eyes to adjust to the new perspective. Scar was by the purple vents now, and almost called out for Doc.  _ ‘Oh right...’ _ He deflated slightly, speckles dimming. He’d almost forgotten that the dual fin** wasn’t by the vents anymore. 

Dang, he was sad now. 

Shaking the thoughts from his mind, the star wing continued on, other predators careening away from him. Which they really didn’t need to! Scar wondered how scary Doc was to others if  _ this _ was how they reacted to any sign of someone in their secondary form. Well, Doc could be kind of scary to him as well sometimes, but Scar was sure it was accidental. Pretty sure at least. Oh well, at least it meant that he wasn’t attacked on his way to the island. 

Scar actually arrived with quite a bit of time to spare! The brunette pouted. And he had even left the lilypads early so he was on time to sleep! Now he had nothing to do though! Surfacing, the star wing looked around. There weren’t any ice floats that looked big enough to lay on for some last minute sunbathing. Though, maybe he could find one of the areas on the island that wasn’t so steep. 

Humming, he nodded, deciding that was what he was going to do. It didn’t take him long anyway, a few minutes tops. There was an annoying snow bank in the way, sure, but his large flippers easily took care of it. Within moments, he’d unearthed a large rocky area that warmed up in the dying sunlight. Perfect. Curling up, he closed his eyes- not quite sleeping, but not fully aware of his surroundings. 

Huh? Scar blinked sleepily. Something was curled up next to him? Looking at it, the star wing grew puzzled. It looked kind of like the snow walkers*** he’d seen walking on the large ice mass a few times before, but it definitely wasn’t one. For one thing, it didn’t have the hard-head and tail tip that they had, nor was it colored right. Plus- it was shivering and had  _ way  _ too short fur. Chirping curiously, the star wing poked at it. 

Pale green flecked eyes peered up at him, and gray triangle-shaped ears perked up. A pitiful mewl answered his questioning chirp. He blinked, tilting his head. Weird, that he couldn’t understand what they were saying. Oh they were saying something, but he didn’t know what the words meant. Well, he could guess a few, like “human” and “cold”. Oh! Were they saying they were cold? Scar did think their fur looked way too thin, and they didn’t seem to have any extra layers of fat or anything similar. 

Was there a heat flower* nearby? It didn’t seem so. Dang. For now his wing and own body heat had to do, he supposed. 

Well, maybe Scar could take them to the caves below- He froze mid-thought as something approached them. The sun had gone down now, and whatever it was had some sort of beam of light coming from their head. He flinched as the light hit his eyes, his tiny furry companion hissing out in discomfort as well. Another figure joined the first, and Scar finally recognized them as oo-mans. Almost instantly his brain screeched to a stop, fizzling out any train of thought. 

“Uh, well I found your runaway cat Fred, but it seems she found a local fauna.” 

“Yeah, I can see that!”

At least they didn’t sound angry. If anything they sounded almost amused or surprised, which was  _ way _ better than angry. Then again, who knew with oo-mans- Grian had told him that the oo-mans hadn’t sounded angry when they took the trio. Actually, now that he thought about it, what were oo-mans doing on the island? He mentally shook his head, that wasn’t important at the moment! What was important was figuring out a way to get back to the caves- maybe with his new friend. (No way was he leaving them with the potentially dangerous oo-mans!)

“What do we do? Your cat seems pretty happy cuddling up to the whale-thing.”

Scar didn’t know exactly what the humans were saying, but they weren’t approaching at least. His furry friend stayed curled up next to him, making odd commentary every once in a while. He didn’t understand more than a few words, as it seemed like their language was similar to the oo-man’s, but he did get the fact that they were a  _ she _ , and that the oo-mans called her Jellie. What an odd-but-interesting name. 

“Do you think we should call somebody, Jeremiah?” 

“Like the scientists? Yeah, that worked out well the last time they went and grabbed one of these guys! It almost wrecked my seatruck- and this one is what, twenty or so feet? Yeah, I don’t think we’re getting your cat back anytime soon.” 

Losing interest in the oo-mans’ gibberish, and deeming them to not be a danger, Scar once again lowered himself back onto the snow. Jellie seemed fine with this, as they were purring. Purring was good, and meant things were happy! They weren’t saying anything either though, it was just happy noise. Yawning, Scar eyed the two oo-mans curiously. If they weren’t a threat, then what were they talking about? Oh, maybe they had been worried about  _ Jellie _ ? It was rather cold, and the “cat” had really short fur. 

Huh, maybe he should- oh! [Um, h-hello??] Scar cautiously warbled as the two oo-mans approached. If he really needed to flee, he could slip down the slope with the aid of gravity. One had a patch of fur on their face, but it didn’t cover the mouth, which was kind of weird. Oh well, maybe it was an oo-man thing. [Oh dang, go away stupid human, I’m warm here!] Jellie seemed annoyed, and backed up until she was fully encompassed by his wing. Scar blinked, bemused by both her and the oo-mans’ actions. 

“Ah, no Jellie, c’mere! Here kitty, kitty, kitty!” 

Scar let out a chirp of confusion at the oo-mans. Why was one of them tapping at the snowy rock and making almost-but-not-quite-hissing sounds? Deciding that it was once again just an oo-man thing, he dismissed it, laying back down. It was most definitely dark now, and the star wing felt a flash of guilt. The others must be worried sick, especially with Doc having gone missing too. The only reason they hadn’t gone on a fishhunt was probably because he was almost always late. 

He had to go back to the caves- but he didn’t want to leave his new friend! Oh why did he have to go by a curfew?! Right, because most of the oo-mans were dangerous. It was hard to remember that when they lacked any sharp teeth or claws. These two seemed fine though. Maybe they were on the island away from the mean ones? That would make sense! 

So, they should be safe to leave his new friend Jellie with! And then he could go down to the caves without the others freaking out about where he was. Yeah, that was a good plan! With a barely audible warble, he stretched his wings out, shaking the snow that had built up on the surface. Apparently the movement startled the oo-man, as they let out a surprised sound and scrambled backwards. Oops. 

Scar gave an apologetic whine and nudged the cat towards the oo-man. He had to go now. [Bye Jellie, I have to get back to the den now.] The star wing was slightly hesitant, after all, who knew if his friend knew what the words meant? Apparently he needn’t have worried though, as Jellie padded over to the oo-man, who looked surprised. Chirping out a goodbye to them as well- TFC always insisted they all learn manners- Scar slipped down the snowy slope and into the water. 

Hopefully the others weren’t too worried. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Star-Wing = Glow Whale  
> **Dual-Fin = Feather Fish  
> ***Snow-Walker = Snow Stalker


	8. Capture

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Remember the medical-based and blood tags? That's part of this chapter.

Doc darted away from the gaping maw of the armour-beast* with a snarl. They usually didn’t bother him in his secondary form, but apparently this one was hungry enough to do so. It clumsily turned to try again, but he was ready for it. The dual-fin** had learned long before that their eyes were a soft spot to aim. An adolescence of aggressive fighting in his secondary form may have cost him a limb and eye- which caused him to lose one of his fins in his normal form as well- but it had given him experience. Experience which he used to survive far better than most other dual-fins. 

Nails dug into the squishy organ, causing the armour-beast to let out a pained shriek and instantly try to get away. [Let go- get off you  _ afreet _ ***!] They screeched, claws aiming towards his torso. Doc obliged in letting them go, only after the eye came free. He watched dispassionately as the idiotic predator kicked away, clouds of yellow staining the waters. Puffing out some air from his gills, the dual fin went back to the sulfur plants. The sun had warmed the rocky surface, and the armour-beasts were back to giving him a rather wide berth now. 

Stretching out, Doc was rather content to simply lay there for a few hours. A few other dual-fins darted around him whenever a predator came to close, using him as a deterrent. He pushed away the pang of melancholy at the sight of them swimming in normal fish forms.  Something he’d never be able to do again.

This came to an end when  _ something _ blocked the light and spooked the others away. He hissed in anger, head tilting towards whatever it was, as the thing had approached from his bad side. Oh. It was just one of the oo-man things that let them swim. Turning back away- the land-walkers weren’t exactly a threat in the water- he laid back down. [Stupid sun-blockers,] he hissed, closing his eyes. 

…

…

. . .

They were right in front of him, weren’t they? Opening his eyes gave him the answer that yes, the land-walkers were indeed in front of him making their odd gibberish noises. Seriously, how could they understand each other?! And why were they so close?  _ ‘Yeah no, I’m out of here,’ _ Doc decided. They looked similar enough to a secondary form that they  _ probably _ had similar weaknesses, but no way was he risking that. Fighting against an unknown was a horrible idea, as the dual fin very well knew. 

“Hey, it’s swimming away!” 

“God dang it- come back here!”

Doc twisted his body around when he realized they were following him, baring his teeth in a snarl. [Stop following me you- you know what? You can’t understand me anyway, so f@ck off.] There, that made him feel better, and they actually paused for a few moments before following him again. Well, if they wanted to be like that… They may be able to try and follow him, but they were still horrible at swimming.

With a sudden flick of his tail, he was rocketing through the cracks in the rock with surprising speed and maneuverability.  _ ‘Let’s see how you deal with this.’ _ His bioluminescence was minimal in this form, and purple in color, furthering his camouflage here. There was an entrance to a cave system nearby with the glowing rocks, and if he could get there the oo-mans probably wouldn’t follow. Twisting around, he peered over the edge of an incline. Had he lost them? 

Perhaps he wouldn’t have to risk entering the caves after all.

A whining noise was his only warning when the oo-man creation slammed down into the rocks, leg-parts bending slightly. Ah, that was a bit of an issue. He didn’t think such a clunky thing would move that fast, especially without gaining a leviathan’s attention, yet here it was easily keeping pace. His only chance of losing it now was to find a crack that was too small for it to enter- the cave entrance was big enough for it to follow. The oo-mans themselves couldn’t swim well, and needed air. 

New plan then. 

Rumbling a meaningless warning, Doc turned once more, taking off. He may not be as fast as Keralis or as nimble as Impulse, but he was still better than the armour-shell the oo-man used. Even then, it kept up surprisingly well. 

Feinting a right turn, the dual-fin doubled back to a deep crack. It wasn’t very noticeable, and he’d have to time changing just right. Too soon and he wouldn’t have momentum, and too late he’d fly right into a rock. Only one fin meant that anything save for simple tricks like this was impossible in fish form. He usually only used this for the creatures too big to go against. It was quick and simple, and it had kept him alive for quite a bit of time. 

As soon as he was out of sight and the crack opened up enough, he changed back. He preferred being able to  _ actually move _ . Gripping onto the rock Doc twisted around, keeping the opening in the sight of his good eye. Stay silent and still when you don’t want to be found. Adjusting his position- his glowing spots could give him away if he wasn’t careful- the sickly skinned creature waited. It didn’t take long for the oo-man’s to arrive. 

They seemed confused, looking at something in their limbs and then around. They’d swim one way, then turn back to the area above the crack. Definitely looking for him then. Narrowing his eyes, he slipped farther into the darkness, away from the risk of being spotted. He didn’t care for their reasons for hunting him, nor why they were even focusing on him specifically. 

The oo-mans continued to go back and forth, eventually pausing by the crack. One did something with a stick in its hand, and suddenly the crack was lit up in blinding light. 

Not expecting the sudden brightness, Doc reared back with a pained shriek. Blindness, however momentary, could easily get one killed. The dual-fin scrambled backwards blindly, straining his other senses. He could  _ hear _ the oo-mana jibberish become louder- though he couldn’t tell if they were getting closer. 

“How in the sweet mother of earth did it get in there?!”

Doc shook his head, finally beginning to regain some semblance of sight. Everything was a little blurry, but he could see. The oo-mans seemed confused, and unable to get to him, but they now knew where he was. He’d have to leave eventually, so now it was who could play the waiting game longest. 

Jeremiah winced as his sea truck shook. The  _ thing _ the scientists wanted kept slamming into the walls, screeching angrily. He’d seen the other fish-people before sure, but never so close. A thin door of metal was all that stood between him, and a pissed off creature, and Jermiah had no doubt given enough time it would break. He’d seen the claw marks in the prawn suit, which was designed to be even more heavy-duty than his sea truck. If he hadn’t seen the testing for this containment module, he wouldn’t even be piloting it. 

The sea truck shook once more, and he shuddered. 

It was getting more desperate the farther it was taken from the vents, despite it having no visibility in the cage. And the higher ups could call it whatever they liked and make it as fancy looking as they wanted- it was a cage. Something to hold a sentient creature against its will and to take it away from its home. The ravenette swallowed thickly. 

Did it know they were taking it from the vents, where it had probably lived its entire life? Jeremiah didn’t know what the scientists planned to do with it, and if he was honest, he didn’t want to know. 

Doc was in pain. He tried to thrash away blindly, but something held him down. It was like every lightning bolt in a storm had found its way to him, like he was burning from the inside out. He couldn’t move, or fight, or do anything. He was completely blind, working eye covered and a ringing tearing through his ears. Even as he tried to escape he could feel blood dripping down his back. Something was methodically slicing into his head, and he could do nothing to stop it. He couldn’t do anything but scream. 

The dual fin didn’t know how long they did it. Minutes- hours passed in a haze of blood and pain, and he couldn’t reach for the sweet release of unconsciousness. It was like something was rooting around in his brain, jumbling his thoughts and movements. His head pounded, dizzy and his gills felt like they had crusted over. Even breathing sent white hot streams of pain across his body, as though something was flaying his skin from his body. 

Doc wanted to go home. He wanted to go back to the island with the rest of his friends. He wanted to curl up in a heat-flower’s warmth with Scar and Grian. He wanted to make traps with Zedaph and Ex. He wanted to spar with False and Cleo. He wanted to get away from this place of white and metal. 

Doc’s sleep was fitful, his body shaking from nerves firing wrong. Salt had crusted on his gills, causing them to be clogged and bloody in the too warm air. The tiny area was barely big enough for him to curl up in, and even then he was pressed against a solid object on most sides. He still couldn’t see, and opening his working eye sent pain shooting up his head. So he laid there on the cold damp ground, shuddering. Something, something was attached to his arm stump, something cold and unnatural. They had done something to his head, there was something hard, cold,  _ wrong _ on his face,  _ in  _ his face.  _ In his brain- in his mind. _

It pressed against his skull, scrambling his senses, causing his head to pound. The brunette’s breaths were shallow, panicked as he struggled to breath right. How long had he been out of water? Hours?  _ Days? _ Time crawled onwards, shadows dancing behind closed eyelids. How long would they keep him here? Not forever…  _ right? _ A choked noise escaped his throat, and one of the shadows stopped moving. 

“Ah dang it. Hey now, I know it hurts, but we’re almost ready to finish up, okay?” 

There was a touch on his head, and he snarled. Or tried to, his throat felt clogged up, like it was filled with something, so the only thing that came out was a grating whimper. Great, that was just what he needed! Doc hissed as another jolt of pain made itself known, his arm practically numb from it now. 

Godd@mmit. 

Sam worked as quickly as she could. The other, more specialized roboticists were trying to go as fast as they could as well. None of them were used to working on something so  _ human _ looking. (And she still remembered the destruction the ice worm wrought on the old base) Usually most prosthetics for limbs and eyes were used for animals, with human patients being so rare that one could never have one their entire career. 

When the feather fish had been brought in, it had been incredibly aggressive. Way more aggressive than an herbivore should be really. It was more than a little terrifying when it began screaming. But they had continued on, wishing they could wear earplugs to block out the human-sounding noise. The team- her included- had managed to connect the prosthetic eye in a few hours, but the arm was going to be an issue. Something like an eye wouldn’t be used to get around, nor did it require a large amount of motor function. 

Sure it had more complex sensors, to actually allow it to see, but the sheer amount of reinforcements needed for the arm of an underwater creature was ridiculous. Plus, unlike most things, the limb had fingers and a thumb that needed to be perfectly articulated. And everything had to be waterproof, from the faux nerves, to the sensors, to the tracker. This was one of the hardest projects Sam had ever been a part of, with more than a small bit being completely experimental. The ethics were a little questionable, but the results would speak for themself. 

Now all that was left was to release the fauna back into the wild, where it would logically return to the others. Hopefully. 

Everything was a rush as Doc fled. He couldn’t say how many times he swam right into an iceberg, or even an armour-beast. If he was asked, he wouldn’t even be able to tell you if he’d fought them off or simply fled from them as well. Everything just blurred together in a splatter of burning and panic. He didn’t stop, he just kept swimming with single mindedness until he got to the island caves. Even then he merely slowed down, clawing out handfuls of ice and rock as he continued farther in. He only stopped when his body could go no farther, collapsing before familiar shadows and panicked calls of his name. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Armour-beast = Cryptosuchus  
> ** Dual-Fin = Feather Fish  
> ***Afreet = demon


	9. DISCORD SERVER

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> If you aren't interested, feel free to skip this.

Hey guys! I've made a Discord Server for art and discussions, seeing as AO3 dislikes showing the pictures I put up on my stories. If you don't want to join, then ignore this, but if you're interested, the link is here: [https://discord.gg/g7xE9JW.](https://discord.gg/g7xE9JW)

Members get early access to pictures, snippets of story, and help out with potential objects/characters/scenarios in the story. We also just chat and share funny ideas. I hope you guys enjoy it! ^-^


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